One month after a report showed Kansas has an exceptional opportunity to create jobs and promote economic growth by developing the Flint Hills tourism industry, Governor Kathleen Sebelius today announced the inaugural Symphony in the Flint Hills concert.

“The tallgrass prairie is an ideal setting for a performance like this one. It really will be an unforgettable event, mixing beautiful music with breathtaking scenery,” said Governor Sebelius.

The concert will take place at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve in Chase County on June 10, 2006. The Kansas City Symphony, with its 100-voice chorus, an orator, and Grammy Award-winning Paul Winter Consort will perform Grasslands: Prairie Voices, a symphony written by Kansas native Eugene Friesen, cellist with the Consort.

“The Flint Hills are a national treasure. In addition to being another example of how we can attract tourists to the region, this concert is a fitting way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the tallgrass preserve,” said Sebelius, who is also president of the Kansas Park Trust. She will serve as Honorary Chair of the Symphony in the Flint Hills event.

Symphony in the Flint Hills is an emerging concert series created to echo the June 1994 “Symphony on the Prairie” that drew more than 3,000 people from around the region.

“Those attending experienced the magic of symphonic music on a prairie hillside,” said Emily Hunter, event coordinator for Symphony in the Flint Hills, Inc. “Since that night, people have been asking if there will ever be another symphony on the prairie. The answer is a resounding ‘Yes!’ We hope people will make their plans early.”

““The site of the concert has a spectacular view – people will experience the symphony in the midst of the rolling Flint Hills, grass and sky,” said Kathy Miller, board chair of Symphony in the Flint Hills, Inc. “We are thrilled to work with the Kansas Park Trust, National Park Service and The Nature Conservancy for our inaugural concert at the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve.”

Symphony in the Flint Hills, Inc. plans to produce an annual symphonic concert series in different locations within the natural landscape of the Flint Hills to help develop the tourism potential of the region, and bring jobs and economic growth to area communities.

For more detailed information about the inaugural Symphony in the Flint Hills event and to get ticket information, visit www.symphonyintheflinthills.org. or call 620-273-8955.

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